Shall We Dance? (1996)
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Movie Reviews of Shall We Dance? (1996)
Movie Review: A tender Japanese comedy
Summary: 5 Stars
I haven't seen the 1937 version with Fred Astaire, or the 2004 version with Richard Gere, but I don't really feel the need to see them now. This movie is absolutely great. It's very similar to Tampopo. After seeing this movie I checked on Amazon, and they do share their main actor (Kôji Yakusho) so maybe it's not a coinceidence.
Shall We Dance and Tampopo are both about someone changing their lives by trying to become proficient in a certain area (dancing and noodle cooking), in both cases the main characters are an older man and a younger woman, and both movies are tender Japanese comedies that satirize movie conventions and Japanese culture.
The difference is that in Tampopo, an older man is motivating and training a younger woman, and in Shall We Dance it is the younger woman who motivates and train the older man. Yakusho plays the role of a man stuck in the Japanese work rut, who sees a beautiful pensive woman at the window of a dance school every evening when he passes by on the train. So he decides to enroll to be able to dance with that woman. Along the way, it changes his life, and the way he sees other people, and changes her life as well.
I especially liked the fact that the conflict with his wife was handled with realism and tact, instead of the screaming fits and "you're sleeping outside tonight" we've been trained to expect from American television. That was a real relief.
As for which movie is the best, wow ! I can't decide ! Tampopo was a little more substantial, but both are wonderful. I'm going to have to agonize over which movie to nudge off my top 20 to put this one in.
Movie Review: Delightful Romantic Story of Ballroom Dancers in Japan
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a lovely story with fun dance scenes and a talented cast. As much as I enjoyed Gere, Sarandon and Lopez in the American version of this film, this Japanese original has more soul, I think, and more interesting messages. In the American film, a key message seems to be about married couples understanding and being witness to each other's lives, while in the Japanese version a key message is about daring to love ballroom dance for its own sake -- in a culture that frowns on ballroom romanticism. And another message in the Japanese story is about dance partners needing to trust each other as they perform their roles: "The man protects the woman." This film pulls you into really caring about the simple, middle-aged accountant who dares to become a real ballroom dancer, and the traditional wife who tries to figure out and accommodate the changes in her husband. A great film to have on hand because you will want to watch it again. POSTSCRIPT: I just watched this film again -- the full 136-minute version in Japanese with no dubbing or subtitles. I don't speak Japanese. AND I STILL LOVED IT. Every single minute. I'd forgotten how touching the husband-wife relationship is and how much the lead actor, Koji Yakusho, reminds me of Gregory Peck. (His wife reminds me of Renee Zellwegger.) Yes, the American version is entertaining enough, but the Japanese version is everything a story on film should be, making you really care about the characters. The difference is like having a popsicle instead of a rich, homemade, full-bodied ice cream. Both have their place, but one is definitely more satisfying.Movie Review: AS A JAPANESE VIEWER...
Summary: 5 Stars
At long last, 'Shall We Dance?' is available in the DVD format. I LOVE this film for many reasons. First, you can see what the ordinary Japanese semi-middle class family life is like. No guns or swords, no blood, no samurai or soldiers - this is a very cultural film about modern Japan. Secondly, this movie shows how much the Japanese people admire the European/Western culture (in this film's case the ballroom dancing, sportsmanship, and Blackpool!). If you are, or thinking about, learning Japanese, listen to how Tamako-sensei (the elderly female dance instructor) speaks. As well as speaks gently, she shows the gentle heart of the traditional Japanese lady. Koji Yakusho (Memoirs of a Geisha, Babel) has proved he is one of the most brilliant actors in Japan, and my favourite one is definitely Naoto Takenaka, who plays a funny funny bloke who specialises Latin dance to fill the 'gap' in his everyday life and hopefully find a nice girl too.
FYI: Obviously I have already seen the Hollywood version of this film, but it's not the same thing at all. It's supposed to be a re-make of this Japanese original, but, in my view, it's a little bit too 'westernised' and almost feels like a different film. Maybe you can make your own judgement by watching this original version first? I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
Movie Review: another great dance movie
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie is another one of my favorite dance films. In addition to dance, there is a connection with the characters and their personal struggles. The story has a fortitude and strength in character development and plot that is timeless. Unlike the US version of the same film, it is not about some middle aged professional well-monied, power monger wanting to go slumming on the sly with a ghetto dance teacher. This version is about a man who is struggling to find meaning in his life which is filled with an emptiness he can't quite grasp. He supports his family by extended hours and commute times in some sort of accountancy type firm. He connects to the despair he sees on the face of the woman peering out from the dance studio window, this isn't wonderlust, this is a shared sense of loss, futility, and disappointment. Watching these two characters find and fill the source of this loss through dance is powerful and lends hope to all of us.
Additionally the dance scenes are wonderful. I especially enjoyed watching the learning process of our main character. The cast are also top notch, and fill out the roles with a believability and quirkiness that bring us into their lives. The story is a lovely, tragic, and timeless illustration of the human condition and its trappings most of us struggle with at some time in our lives.
Movie Review: 0 for the DVD release
Summary: 5 Stars
It's pretty insulting that Miramax has had the movie trimmed to 118 minutes for the DVD. "Shall We Dance?" had already been released in the U.S. The American remake made tens of millions of dollars. Fans of the original had to wait for the remake just to see this DVD. And the remake's being advertized in the DVD's only special feature. So the DVD was made to sell two movies. This release was done for synergistic advertizing, and that's it.
As far as I can tell, a wonderful Japanese story has given its all, so to speak, to fill the coffers of its American rights owners. It's been put in the position of having to advertize another film. And still it can't get released in its proper form, at its proper length.
I would love to have a DVD of this gem, but not this DVD. A crassly-made, hacked-up version of the film and not a single relevant, non-remake-shilling special feature? Why bother buying this? At this point, I practically know all the scenes in the original "Shall We Dance?" by heart. Not to mention that the movie has been on cable recently. If it comes on again, my choice seems obvious. Miramax should either change its ways or accept that it has nothing to offer ... and sell the rights to the movie to someone else.